ISC Daily News Summary

Principal of the Cheltenham Ladies' College and President of the Girls' Schools Association (GSA), Vicky Tuck, has a new weekly online Daily Telegraph column. In her first column on Saturday, Mrs Tuck discussed parenting, and how parents are finding decision-making increasingly difficult, perhaps because they have too much choice. The column resulted in an article in Saturday's Daily Telegraph.

Vicky Tuck: Parents 'swamped by advice' (Daily Telegraph online only)
Mums and dads 'overwhelmed' by parenting advice (Daily Telegraph)

Eton College's Provost, Sir Eric Anderson, has said that the school aims to welcome pupils from all backgrounds within 10 years, regardless of their parents' inability to pay. Sir Eric expressed his wishes in a magazine sent to former pupils.

Eton 'will be open to all' within 10 years (Sunday Times)
'All welcome' at Eton in 10 years (Daily Telegraph not online)
Eton aid for poor pupils (Daily Mirror)

Saturday's Daily Telegraph reported on Dr Bernard Trafford's views on diplomas, following his comment piece in the TES last week. Dr Trafford is Headmaster of the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle.

Diplomas 'not hard enough' for brightest pupils, claims head (Daily Telegraph)

Master of Wellington College, Dr Anthony Seldon, will this week address the Guild of Educators, calling for a 'regime change' to help improve the wellbeing of children.

Stressed pupils 'perform poorly' (BBC News Online)
Happy children 'do best at school' (Daily Telegraph not online)

The Royal High School in Bath is profiled in the latest Daily Telegraph 'Town vs Gown' feature.

Town vs Gown: Royal High School vs Beechen Cliff School in Bath (Daily Telegraph)

'As the largest union in the independent sector, ATL supports many independent teachers whose hours exceed those in the state sector, whose pay is less and whose access to training is limited.' John Richardson, National Official, Independent Schools, Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).

Lesson for teachers (Independent letters)
Answer the question with Chris Woodhead (Sunday Times)

A new study by the think tank Policy Exchange suggests that pupils may be unknowingly ruining their chances of getting into top universities by choosing so-called 'soft' subjects, including law, media studies and psychology. The study found that the vast majority of research-intensive universities prefer to admit students with more 'traditional' A-levels. However, Cambridge University and the London School of Economics are the only universities which publish lists of 'non-preferred' subjects.

The hard truth about 'soft' subjects (Policy Exchange)
Top universities 'snub' students with soft A-levels (Sunday Times)
Students need hard truth over 'soft' A-level choices (Times)
Pupils pick 'wrong' A-levels (Independent)
Top universities 'closing the door' to soft A-levels (Daily Telegraph)
‘Soft A-levels may make university entry harder' (Guardian)
Universities run blacklists of pupils who study 'soft' topics at A-level (Daily Mail)
Want to get ahead? Avoid 'soft' subjects (Daily Express not online)
'Soft' A-level warning for pupils (BBC News Online)
Kids' soft exam risk (Sun not online)

The government has drawn up a 'hit list' of 204 low achieving primary schools that must improve or close. The Sunday Telegraph also reports on a group of parents who are bidding to run their own rural school in Suffolk to prevent their children being sent 10 miles away to a poorly-performing secondary.

Primary school 'hit list' revealed (Sunday Telegraph)
Parents trying to set up their own state school (Sunday Telegraph)

Leading author Susan Hill has launched an attack on standards of English among 'ignorant' teachers and pupils. The writer claims that she receives dozens of e-mails every week from students studying her books asking the author to complete their essays. Today's Daily Mail features a tongue-in-cheek GCSE exam paper in order to demonstrate how 'dumbed down' GCSEs have become.

'Ignorant' students flood author with essay requests (Daily Telegraph)
A testing education is no rocket science (Daily Telegraph)
All's far from well with Shakespeare (Daily Telegraph)
GCSE for dummies (Daily Mail)

Children's Secretary Ed Balls will soon learn the results of the investigation into Haringey Council, which was ordered after the death of Baby P. BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning reported that a new row is brewing over the proposal for a central database for all children in England, ContactPoint. The Deputy Children's Commissioner for England, Sue Berelowitz, spoke on the programme to defend the system.

ContactPoint on Today programme (BBC Radio 4, scroll down to 7.31am)
Call to end abuse cycle as Balls prepares to act on Baby P report (Guardian)
Ofsted inspectors fail to visit abused children (Sunday Telegraph)

A feature in the Independent looks at the education system in Sweden.

Free school: Conservatives eye the Swedish model (Independent)

A study for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) indicates that white parents are less likely to take an interest in their children's education than black or Asian parents.

White parents 'show less interest in education' (Independent)

A mother who believes that nursery pupils spend too much time cooped up indoors has opened Britain's first outdoor pre-school, where children remain outside whatever the weather.

Toddlers whose nursery is the great outdoors (Independent)

The NASUWT teaching union has called for a ban on mobile phones in the classroom, proposing 'phone banks' in schools where pupils can store them during lessons.

Ban on kids' mobiles in classroom (Daily Mirror)

Three fire engines were called to remove a Santa hat placed on the roof of Cambridge's Gonville and Caius College, after it was placed there as an end-of-term prank. College authorities failed to see the funny side and phoned the fire brigade to remove the object from the top of the 60ft building, because it was an 'elf and safety' hazard.

Three fire engines called to remove Santa hat from Cambridge college roof (Daily Telegraph)
Operation Santa Hat (Daily Mail)
Firefighters operation to retrieve Santa's hat (Daily Mirror)